Headlines

NJ

Memo to Snowden: Don’t try this in Ecuador

VENEZUELA: The power amassed by the government under the late president Hugo Chavez has enabled it to “intimidate, censor, and prosecute Venezuelans who criticize the president or thwart his political agenda,” writes Human Rights Watch. Reprisals against government critics have unnerved judges, journalists and human rights defenders. Chavez adopted laws that “dramatically reduce the public’s right to obtain information held by the government.” In addition, he packed the Supreme Court, which “has largely abdicated its role as a check on executive power.” Voters narrowly chose a hand-picked Chavez ally to succeed Chavez in a disputed April election.

ECUADOR: This is the country that gave asylum last summer to Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks. He is now advising Snowden from inside the embassy of Ecuador in London, where he has been for a year.

Human Rights Watch in its latest annual report notes that journalists and media figures who criticize the government are subjected to “public denunciation and retaliatory litigation.” In addition, it says, “Corruption, inefficiency, and political influence have plagued Ecuador’s judiciary for years.”

The group cites a “terrorism and sabotage” section of the criminal code that it says authorities are using against people protesting about issues like the environment. There’s also a 2011 decree from President Rafael Correa allowing the government to monitor the activities of all international NGOs with offices in Ecuador, and rescind their authorizations to operate if, among other things, they resort to “political interference” or “attack public security and peace.” And just last week, Human Rights Watch scored Ecuador for a new law it termed an “assault on free speech.”

Like the other nations on Snowden’s sanctuary search, this does not seem like his type of place.

Blowback

Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.

Trackbacks/Pings

Comments

The power amassed by the government under the late president Hugo Chavez has enabled it to “intimidate, censor, and prosecute Venezuelans who criticize the president or thwart his political agenda,” writes Human Rights Watch. Reprisals against government critics have unnerved judges, journalists and human rights defenders. Chavez adopted laws that “dramatically reduce the public’s right to obtain information held by the government.” In addition, he packed the Supreme Court, which “has largely abdicated its role as a check on executive power.” Voters narrowly chose a hand-picked Chavez ally to succeed Chavez in a disputed April election.

A few differences in degree, but this sounds an awful lot like Obama’s playbook.

But he sold out his own country. Where despite modern communications CAN be intercepted, and always have been able to be, you can do, say, watch, read, and attempt to spread any sort of good or vile thought processes or opinions you like, without serious consequence.

As long as you don’t attempt to plot a terrorist attack.

Nice move, d*ck. Wait till you get a load of the surveillance, information control, and political suppression of your new favorite countries. Your saviors from the evil empire.

But he sold out his own country. Where despite modern communications CAN be intercepted, and always have been able to be, you can do, say, watch, read, and attempt to spread any sort of good or vile thought processes or opinions you like, without serious consequence.

Except being investigated by the IRS if you are a conservative organization.

Or use the Justice Department to go after journalists who write stories you don’t like.

Or have the FBI arrest film makers when you need a scapegoat for a failed foreign policy mess.

Or have the Department of Defense and the Secretary of State put pressure on a pastor who might burn a Koran.

As long as you don’t attempt to plot a terrorist attack.

Genuine on June 23, 2013 at 10:22 PM

Tsarnaev?

Yeah, they got advance warning from the Russians about that guy and ignored it.

Where was the NSA on that?

Maybe if they had put a tenth of the effort into Tsarnaev as they did Terry Jones, or the guy who made “Innocence of Muslims” more people in Boston would have made it home that day.

Snowden is about to get a reality check to his utopian fantasies of “open-ness”.

America’s sins are puny pecadillos compared to the despotic dinosaurs he is courting.

profitsbeard on June 23, 2013 at 10:45 PM

What he’s going to get is what Moldyrind would get if it were parachuted into Iran and experienced an actual theocracy by non-Judeo-Christian morals. There would be no harder reality check and the stakes would be his pathetic life.

My personal bet is that Snowden doesn’t last a year before the freedom-spoiled mouth gets him killed.